{"id":139640,"date":"2026-07-17T23:26:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-18T05:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/mount-olympus-home-of-the-ancient-greek-gods-is-a-candidate-for-the-unesco-world-heritage-list\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T23:26:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-18T05:26:35","slug":"mount-olympus-home-of-the-ancient-greek-gods-is-a-candidate-for-the-unesco-world-heritage-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/mount-olympus-home-of-the-ancient-greek-gods-is-a-candidate-for-the-unesco-world-heritage-list\/","title":{"rendered":"Mount Olympus, home of the ancient Greek gods, is a candidate for the UNESCO World Heritage List"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sunflowers
Sunflowers bloom in Kalyvia Varikou, near Litochoro in northern Greece, backdropped by Mount Olympus, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LITOCHORO, Greece (AP) \u2014 Snow-capped for much of the year, Mount Olympus, mythological home of ancient Greece\u2019s<\/a> 12 Olympian gods, has captured the imagination through the millennia. Rising to 2,918 meters (9,573 feet) from a base practically at sea level, the ancient Greeks believed the throne of Zeus, king of the gods, stood on the highest of its craggy, often mist-shrouded peaks.<\/p>\n

Now, modern-day Greeks hope their tallest mountain will be inducted into UNESCO\u2019s World Heritage List<\/a> as a mixed cultural and natural site. The nomination is to be discussed when the World Heritage Committee meets in Busan, South Korea from Sunday through July 29.<\/p>\n

\u201cOlympus is our life. It is the place we grew up in,\u201d said Evagelos Geroliolios, mayor of Dion-Olympus, based in Litochoro, the mountain\u2019s main town. \u201cIt is the place we see every day, but at the same time, it is also a place which carries with it myth, history, biodiversity, extraordinary beauty and a very great cultural weight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seat of the gods<\/strong><\/p>\n

Few locations are as central to ancient Greek mythology as Mount Olympus. It was here that Zeus was said to have established his court after overthrowing his father, Cronus, in a 10-year war that ended the reign of the Titans.<\/p>\n

Interest in Olympus may receive another boost with the theatrical release<\/a> this week of Christopher Nolan\u2019s \u201cThe Odyssey,\u201d<\/a> a new adaptation of Homer\u2019s epic, in which the mountain serves as the home of Zeus and the Olympian gods who influence Odysseus\u2019 journey.<\/p>\n

On one of Olympus\u2019s lower peaks, excavations have uncovered an open-air sanctuary, with the oldest finds dating to the Hellenistic period, which ran from 323 B.C. to 30 B.C. According to Greece\u2019s original UNESCO nomination, the sanctuary is believed to have been one mentioned by the ancient philosopher and historian Plutarch, who in the 2nd century wrote of processions to one of Olympus\u2019s peaks for animal sacrifices to Zeus.<\/p>\n

The mountain retained religious significance<\/a> into the Christian era. \u0391 chapel on the peak of Prophet Elias, at 2,803 meters, is believed to be the highest altitude chapel in the Christian Orthodox world. The mountain\u2019s Enipeas Gorge holds the remains of a monastery founded in 1542, while a roughly 20-minute walk from there leads to the Holy Cave of St. Dionysios, a chapel built into a cave from where a small spring flows, believed to carry holy water.<\/p>\n

The mountain\u2019s slopes, which reach practically to the sea, also host a wealth of flora and fauna, including endemic species. It is this blending of culture, myth, natural beauty and biodiversity that locals hope will see their mountain declared a World Heritage site<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a place we love. It is a place that many people from all over the world visit to see, to live, to experience. We want to protect it,\u201d Geroliolios said. Its inclusion on UNESCO\u2019s list<\/a> would be \u201csomething very big that goes beyond not just local boundaries, but national boundaries. It is something that concerns the entire world. It is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inclusion in the World Heritage List is far from certain<\/strong><\/p>\n

Greece<\/a> began the process to have Mount Olympus recognized as a World Heritage site in 2014, inscribing it on its Tentative List \u2014 the mandatory first step in any nomination. The Tentative List is where countries include sites they can then formally nominate over the next five to 10 years.<\/p>\n

The nomination process includes a preliminary assessment followed by submission of a full nomination file, which is then evaluated over 14 months by advisory bodies, including the International Council on Monuments and Sites, ICOMOS, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.<\/p>\n

Recommendations by the advisory bodies are then discussed during the World Heritage Committee\u2019s annual meeting, where representatives of 21 countries vote on nominated sites.<\/p>\n

Greece’s Mount Olympus nomination is far from certain. A draft of the Busan meeting’s agenda indicates the committee will refer the nomination back to Greece and request further details.<\/p>\n

Still, locals hope the mountain\u2019s cultural and natural wonders will secure it a place and will play a role in securing more protection for the mountain.<\/p>\n

The need for protection<\/strong><\/p>\n

The mayor, Geroliolios, said inclusion on the World Heritage list \u201cplaces some greater obligations on our part to protect this environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Environmental protection is also foremost in the mind of mountain guide Babis Marinidis, president of the Alpine Club of Litochoro.<\/p>\n

Including Olympus on UNESCO\u2019s World Heritage list<\/a> would likely attract more people to the mountain and the surrounding area, Marinidis said. \u201cHow many people can this mountain, this ecosystem, bear?\u201d he asked. Although much of Olympus was designated a national park decades ago and there are regulations in place, many are openly flouted, with Marinidis saying visitors regularly ignore \u201cno swimming\u201d or \u201cno camping\u201d signs.<\/p>\n

The ever-growing number of visitors had led local authorities to consider imposing entrance fees and registering visitor numbers. \u201cI used to be against that,\u201d Marinidis said. \u201cBut now with so many people, I believe some limit must be imposed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mount Olympus has claimed many lives<\/strong><\/p>\n

The mythological home of the gods attracts hikers and mountaineers from across the world. While technical climbing experience isn\u2019t mandatory to reach the summit, the mountain is also not to be trifled with.<\/p>\n

With its combination of changeable weather and treacherous terrain, it has claimed many lives<\/a>. The most recent fatality was on July 11, when a 64-year-old Greek hiker died after collapsing on a trail. In May, rescue crews found the body of a 25-year-old Spanish man days after he went missing while attempting to reach the summit in the snow.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou need to be careful,\u201d and safety measures must always be kept in mind, said 32-year-old hiker Triantafyllos Giannospyros, who was visiting the mountain for the first time. \u201cBut with care and with good organization, it isn\u2019t something you should be afraid of.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stavroula Vourou, who runs a hotel in Litochoro, the town from where many hikers set off, echoed his sentiment.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone sets off to go up and conquer a mountain that needs respect,\u201d she said. \u201cYou respect this mountain, it respects you too.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Becatoros contributed from Athens, Greece. Srdjan Nedeljkovic in Litochoro, Greece, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP\u2019s collaboration<\/a> with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.<\/p>\n

\"A
A statue of Alexander the Great holding Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, stands near Litochoro in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, backdropped by Mount Olympus' highest peaks, Mytikas and Stefani. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"People
People swim beneath a waterfall in the Enipeas Gorge on Mount Olympus in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Candles
Candles burn outside a chapel at the Holy Cave of St. Dionysios in the Enipeas Gorge on Mount Olympus in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A
A visitor approaches a chapel at the Holy Cave of St. Dionysios in the Enipeas Gorge on Mount Olympus in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"The
The morning light shines on Mytikas, Greece's highest peak, center left, and Stefani, known as the Throne of Zeus, center right, atop Mount Olympus seen from the outskirts of Litochoro in northern Greece, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A
A butterfly stands on a wildflower in the Enipeas Gorge on Mount Olympus in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Theodoris
Theodoris Papaioannou tends his kiwi orchard, backdropped by Mount Olympus, near the village of Dion in northern Greece, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sunflowers bloom in Kalyvia Varikou, near Litochoro in northern Greece, backdropped by Mount Olympus, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris)(AP Photo\/Petros Giannakouris) LITOCHORO, Greece (AP) \u2014 Snow-capped for much of the year, Mount Olympus, mythological home of ancient Greece\u2019s 12 Olympian gods, has captured the imagination through the millennia. Rising to 2,918 meters (9,573 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":139641,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5734],"tags":[],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-139640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-associated-press"],"acf":[],"author_name":"Website Administrator","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=139640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/139641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=139640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=139640"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=139640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}